1.
National Monument (United States)
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Historically, some national monuments were managed by the War Department. National monuments can be so designated through the power of the Antiquities Act of 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt used the act to declare Devils Tower in Wyoming as the first national monument. The Antiquities Act of 1906 resulted from concerns about protecting mostly prehistoric Native American ruins, the Act authorized permits for legitimate archaeological investigations and penalties for taking or destroying antiquities without permission. Among the next three monuments he proclaimed in 1906 was Petrified Forest in Arizona, another natural feature, in 1908, Roosevelt used the act to proclaim more than 800,000 acres of the Grand Canyon as a national monument. In 1918, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed Katmai National Monument in Alaska, Katmai was later enlarged to nearly 2,800,000 acres by subsequent Antiquities Act proclamations and for many years was the largest national park system unit. Petrified Forest, Grand Canyon, and Katmai were among the national monuments later converted to national parks by Congress. Substantial opposition did not materialize until 1943, when President Franklin D. Roosevelt proclaimed Jackson Hole National Monument in Wyoming. He did this to accept a donation of lands acquired by John D. Rockefeller, roosevelts proclamation unleashed a storm of criticism about use of the Antiquities Act to circumvent Congress. A bill abolishing Jackson Hole National Monument passed Congress but was vetoed by Roosevelt, the proclamation authority was not used again anywhere until 1996, when President Bill Clinton proclaimed the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in Utah. This action was unpopular in Utah, and bills were introduced to further restrict the presidents authority. To date, none of them have been enacted, presidents have used the Antiquities Acts proclamation authority not only to create new national monuments but to enlarge existing ones. For example, Franklin D. Roosevelt significantly enlarged Dinosaur National Monument in 1938, lyndon B. Johnson added Ellis Island to Statue of Liberty National Monument in 1965, and Jimmy Carter made major additions to Glacier Bay and Katmai National Monuments in 1978. Marine National Monument List of U. S. National Forests List of areas in the National Park System of the United States List of U. S
2.
Natural Bridges National Monument
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Natural Bridges National Monument is a U. S. It features the thirteenth largest natural bridge in the world, carved from the white Permian sandstone of the Cedar Mesa Formation that gives White Canyon its name, the three bridges in the park are named Kachina, Owachomo, and Sipapu, which are all Hopi names. A natural bridge is formed through erosion by flowing in the stream bed of the canyon. Eventually, as erosion and gravity enlarge the opening, the bridge collapses under its own weight. There is evidence of at least two collapsed natural bridges within the Monument, in 1904, the National Geographic Magazine publicized the bridges and the area was designated a National Monument April 16,1908 by President Theodore Roosevelt. It is Utahs first National Monument, the Monument was nearly inaccessible for many decades, as reflected by the visitor log kept by the Monuments superintendents. The bridges and other features present on the Colorado Plateau today were molded by the processes of erosion, the destructive forces of wind and rain, running water, and freezing temperatures attacked the uplifts as soon as all the tectonic havoc started in the Late Cretaceous. The Colorado Plateau has been uplifted about 12,000 feet since the end of the Cretaceous about 66 million years ago, some of this uplift occurred geologically rapidly. As the rate of uplift increased, so did the rate of erosion, the Colorado River, for example, carved its present course within the last 6 million years. The Monuments elevation ranges up to 6,500 feet, the Monuments vegetation is predominantly pinyon-juniper forest, with grass and shrubs typical of high-elevation Utah desert. In the canyons, where there is water and seasonal streams, riparian desert plants, such as willow, oak and cottonwood trees. Because the Monument has been closed to grazing for nearly a century, potential bridge collapse is possible at Natural Bridges National Monument, especially along the span of Owachomo Bridge in Armstrong Canyon which is only 9 feet thick at the crest of its span. Earthquake potential is high along the Moab Fault in nearby Arches National Park, while this and other faults in the Paradox Basin are associated with salt structures, the Colorado Plateau interior does possess a low level of seismic hazard. Ground shaking from earthquakes may impact the bridges at Natural Bridges National Monument causing catastrophic failure of one or more of the bridges, there is also a campground and picnic areas within the park. Electricity in the park entirely from a large solar array near the visitors center. To date, Natural Bridges has the only night sky monitored by the NPS Night Sky Team that rates a Class 2 on the Bortle Dark-Sky Scale, horsecollar Ruin is an Ancestral Puebloan ruin visible from an overlook a short hike from Bridge View Drive. The Monuments pygmy rattlesnakes have been the subject of occasional study, in May 2006, KSL Newsradio reported a case of plague found in dead field mice and chipmunks at Natural Bridges. Invasive species include tumbleweeds, certain thistles, dandelions, and tamarisk, much of the monuments ground is covered in communities of cryptobiotic soil crusts, which prevents soil erosion and promotes retention of soil nutrients
3.
Natural Bridge Caverns
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The span was left suspended when a sinkhole collapsed below it. The caverns are located near the city of San Antonio, Texas in the Texas Hill Country next to the Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch, the caverns feature several unique speleothems and other geological formations. The temperature inside the cave is 21 degrees Celsius year-round and the humidity rate is a constant 99 percent, the deepest part of the public tour is 180 feet below the surface, although undeveloped areas of the cavern reach depths of 230 feet. The caverns are still active and considered living. After exiting the limestone, water enters the caverns where it flows and drips constantly throughout, the caverns were discovered on March 27,1960, by students Orion Knox Jr. Preston Knodell Jr. Al Brandt and Joe Cantu from St. Marys University in nearby San Antonio. On their fourth trip into the caverns, the men discovered/explored just over a mile of passage, subsequent explorations revealed 2 miles associated with what became known as the North Cavern. After discovery, Orion Knox Jr. assisted the landowners in obtaining information, Mrs. Clara Wuest, wanted to show the world the cave under her property. Orion approached both the National Park Service and the Texas Park System, while both entities agreed that the cavern was substantial and merited development, both groups told the landowners that funds did not exist for their respective groups to undergo such an endeavor. Mrs. Wuest then decided that she would fund development, Orion dropped out of school to assist. He also approached Jack Burch who had just finished work on developing the Caverns of Sonora near Sonora, Jack agreed to help and development began early in 1963. Mrs. Wuest remarried Harry Heidemann, a retired Texas Highway Patrolman in the early 1960s, together, they started work on developing the cavern. The full-time development crew included Mrs. Wuest-Heidemann, Mr. Heidemann, Jack Burch, Orion Knox, development on the cavern began in 1963 and work on lights and trails continued until opening day, July 3,1964. The cavern has been opened ever since and is owned and operated by family members. Natural Bridge Caverns became a registered United States National Natural Landmark in 1971. During excavation of the trail, a human tooth, arrowheads. Also, just inside the entrance, a jawbone and femur from a species of black bear were discovered. This leads many to believe that uppermost areas of the cavern were used as a shelter by early peoples, an archaeological dig was recently done under the natural bridge. Archaeologists recovered arrow heads and other tools which further indicate the presence of peoples at some point in history. In 1967, speculation on a southern extent to the North Cavern was confirmed when test drilling indicated the presence of a large void approximately 90 feet beneath the surface, a camera was sent down the narrow shaft and photographs revealed a large chamber filled with formations
4.
Delicate Arch
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Delicate Arch is 65-foot-tall freestanding natural arch located in Arches National Park near Moab, Utah, USA. The Olympic torch relay for the 2002 Winter Olympics passed through the arch, because of its distinctive shape, the arch was known as the Chaps and the Schoolmarms Bloomers by local cowboys. It was given its current name by Frank Beckwith, leader of the Arches National Monument Scientific Expedition, in the 1950s, the NPS investigated the possibility of applying a clear plastic coating to the arch to protect it from further erosion and eventual destruction. The idea was abandoned as impractical and contrary to NPS principles. Delicate Arch is formed of Entrada Sandstone, the original sandstone fin was gradually worn away by weathering and erosion, leaving the arch. Other arches in the park were formed the same way but, due to placement, during the summer, white-throated swifts nest in the top of the arch. Nature photographer Michael Fatali started a fire under the arch in September 2000 to demonstrate nighttime photography techniques to a group of amateur photographers, the fire discolored portions of the sandstone near the arch. Fatali was placed on probation and fined $10,900 in restitution to the NPS for the cost of cleanup efforts, in May 2006, climber Dean Potter made the first recorded free solo – no ropes or protection – ascent of this formation. Climbing Delicate Arch was not explicitly forbidden under the rules in force at the time and it was understood, however, that the named-arch formations should not be climbed. The NPS has since closed the loophole by disallowing climbs on any named arch within the park year-round, slacklining and the placement of new fixed anchors on new climbs is also prohibited. Controversy erupted when photographs taken after Potters climb appeared to damage caused by a climbing technique called top roping. Potter stated on several occasions that he never top-roped the arch and it is possible that a previous climber had top-roped the arch, leaving the existing rope scars. Arches National Park Trails Page Arches National Park homepage Panorama Under Arch Beautiful Places episode of Delicate Arch Panoramic View of Delicate Arch at Sunset
5.
Arches National Park
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Arches National Park is a US National Park in eastern Utah. The park is adjacent to the Colorado River,4 miles north of Moab and it is home to over 2,000 natural sandstone arches, including the world-famous Delicate Arch, in addition to a variety of unique geological resources and formations. It contains the highest density of natural arches in the world, the park consists of 76,679 acres of high desert located in the Colorado Plateau. Its highest elevation is 5,653 feet at Elephant Butte, forty-three arches are known to have collapsed since 1977. The park receives on average 10 inches of rain a year, administered by the National Park Service, the area was originally named a National Monument on April 12,1929. It was redesignated as a National Park on November 12,1971, over millions of years, the salt bed was covered with debris eroded from the Uncompahgre Uplift to the northeast. During the Early Jurassic desert conditions prevailed in the region and the vast Navajo Sandstone was deposited, an additional sequence of stream laid and windblown sediments, the Entrada Sandstone, was deposited on top of the Navajo. Over 5,000 feet of sediments were deposited and have been mostly eroded away. Remnants of the cover exist in the area including exposures of the Cretaceous Mancos Shale, the arches of the area are developed mostly within the Entrada formation. The weight of this caused the salt bed below it to liquefy. The evaporites of the area formed more unusual salt anticlines or linear regions of uplift, faulting occurred and whole sections of rock subsided into the areas between the domes. In some places, they turned almost on edge, the result of one such 2, 500-foot displacement, the Moab Fault, is seen from the visitor center. As this subsurface movement of salt shaped the landscape, erosion removed the rock layers from the surface. Except for isolated remnants, the formations visible in the park today are the salmon-colored Entrada Sandstone, in which most of the arches form. These are visible in layer cake fashion throughout most of the park, over time, water seeped into the surface cracks, joints, and folds of these layers. Ice formed in the fissures, expanding and putting pressure on surrounding rock, breaking off bits, winds later cleaned out the loose particles. A series of free-standing fins remained, wind and water attacked these fins until, in some, the cementing material gave way and chunks of rock tumbled out. Others, with the degree of hardness and balance, survived despite their missing sections
6.
Utah
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Utah is a state in the western United States. It became the 45th state admitted to the U. S. on January 4,1896, Utah is the 13th-largest by area, 31st-most-populous, and 10th-least-densely populated of the 50 United States. Utah has a population of more than 3 million, approximately 80% of whom live along the Wasatch Front, Utah is bordered by Colorado to the east, Wyoming to the northeast, Idaho to the north, Arizona to the south, and Nevada to the west. It also touches a corner of New Mexico in the southeast, approximately 62% of Utahns are reported to be members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or LDS, which greatly influences Utahn culture and daily life. The LDS Churchs world headquarters is located in Salt Lake City, Utah is the only state with a majority population belonging to a single church. The state is a center of transportation, education, information technology and research, government services, mining, in 2013, the U. S. Census Bureau estimated that Utah had the second fastest-growing population of any state. St. George was the metropolitan area in the United States from 2000 to 2005. Utah also has the 14th highest median income and the least income inequality of any U. S. state. A2012 Gallup national survey found Utah overall to be the best state to live in based on 13 forward-looking measurements including various economic, lifestyle, the name Utah is derived from the name of the Ute tribe. It means people of the mountains in the Ute language, according to other sources Utah is derived from the Apache name Yudah which means Tall. These Native American tribes are subgroups of the Ute-Aztec Native American ethnicity and were sedentary, the Ancestral Pueblo people built their homes through excavations in mountains, and the Fremont people built houses of straw before disappearing from the region around the 15th century. Another group of Native Americans, the Navajo, settled in the region around the 18th century, in the mid-18th century, other Uto-Aztecan tribes, including the Goshute, the Paiute, the Shoshone, and the Ute people, also settled in the region. These five groups were present when the first European explorers arrived, the southern Utah region was explored by the Spanish in 1540, led by Francisco Vásquez de Coronado, while looking for the legendary Cíbola. A group led by two Catholic priests—sometimes called the Dominguez-Escalante Expedition—left Santa Fe in 1776, hoping to find a route to the coast of California, the expedition traveled as far north as Utah Lake and encountered the native residents. The Spanish made further explorations in the region, but were not interested in colonizing the area because of its desert nature, in 1821, the year Mexico achieved its independence from Spain, the region became known as part of its territory of Alta California. European trappers and fur traders explored some areas of Utah in the early 19th century from Canada, the city of Provo, Utah was named for one, Étienne Provost, who visited the area in 1825. The city of Ogden, Utah was named after Peter Skene Ogden, in late 1824, Jim Bridger became the first known English-speaking person to sight the Great Salt Lake. Due to the salinity of its waters, Bridger thought he had found the Pacific Ocean
7.
Rock formation
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A rock formation is an isolated, scenic, or spectacular surface rock outcrop. Rock formations are usually the result of weathering and erosion sculpting the existing rock, the term rock formation can also refer to specific sedimentary strata or other rock unit in stratigraphic and petrologic studies. Erosion later exposes them in their current form, an example is Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah. Metamorphic rocks are created by rocks that have transformed into another kind of rock, usually by some combination of heat, pressure. An example are the Seneca Rocks in West Virginia, igneous rocks are created when molten rock cools and solidifies, with or without crystallization. They may be either plutonic bodies or volcanic extrusives, again, erosive forces sculpt their current forms. An example is Half Dome in Yosemite National Park, geologists have created a number of terms to describe different rock structures in the landscape that can be formed by natural processes, Inselberg or monadnock is a residual relief feature. It can be a hill, a knob, ridge or small mountain that rises abruptly, like an island. Inselberg is a German word that means island mountain, uluru/Ayers Rock in Australia is a noted example. Peak Stack Mesa Butte Escarpment Gorge Sea cliff River cliff Stone run Crag Tor Promontory is a prominent mass of land which overlooks lower lying land or a body of water, here is a list of rock formations by continent
8.
Arch
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An arch is a curved structure that spans a space and may or may not support weight above it. Arch may be synonymous with vault, but a vault may be distinguished as a continuous arch forming a roof, an arch is a pure compression form. It can span an area by resolving forces into compressive stresses and. This is sometimes referred to as arch action, as the forces in the arch are carried to the ground, the arch will push outward at the base, called thrust. As the rise, or height of the arch decreases, the outward thrust increases, in order to maintain arch action and prevent the arch from collapsing, the thrust needs to be restrained, either with internal ties or external bracing, such as abutments. The most common true arch configurations are the arch, the two-hinged arch. The fixed arch is most often used in reinforced concrete bridge and tunnel construction, because it is subject to additional internal stress caused by thermal expansion and contraction, this type of arch is considered to be statically indeterminate. The two-hinged arch is most often used to long spans. This type of arch has pinned connections at the base, unlike the fixed arch, the pinned base is able to rotate, allowing the structure to move freely and compensate for the thermal expansion and contraction caused by changes in outdoor temperature. However, this can result in additional stresses, so the two-hinged arch is also statically indeterminate, the three-hinged arch is not only hinged at its base, like the two-hinged arch, but at the mid-span as well. The additional connection at the mid-span allows the arch to move in two opposite directions and compensate for any expansion and contraction. This type of arch is not subject to additional stress caused by thermal change. The three-hinged arch is said to be statically determinate. It is most often used for structures, such as large building roofs. Another advantage of the arch is that the pinned bases are more easily developed than fixed ones, allowing for shallow. Arches have many forms, but all fall into three categories, circular, pointed, and parabolic. Arches can also be configured to produce vaults and arcades, Arches with a circular form, also referred to as rounded arches, were commonly employed by the builders of ancient, heavy masonry arches. Ancient Roman builders relied heavily on the arch to span large
9.
Cliff
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In geography and geology, a cliff is a vertical, or nearly vertical, rock exposure. Cliffs are formed as erosion landforms by the processes of weathering, Cliffs are common on coasts, in mountainous areas, escarpments and along rivers. Cliffs are usually formed by rock that is resistant to weathering, sedimentary rocks most likely to form cliffs include sandstone, limestone, chalk, and dolomite. Igneous rocks such as granite and basalt also often form cliffs, an escarpment is a type of cliff, formed by the movement of a geologic fault or a landslide. Most cliffs have some form of slope at their base. In arid areas or under high cliffs, they are generally exposed jumbles of fallen rock, in areas of higher moisture, a soil slope may obscure the talus. Many cliffs also feature tributary waterfalls or rock shelters, sometimes a cliff peters out at the end of a ridge, with tea tables or other types of rock columns remaining. Coastal erosion may lead to the formation of sea cliffs along a receding coastline, the Ordnance Survey distinguishes between cliffs and outcrops. Cliff is a Romance loanword that has its origins in the Latin forms clivus / clevus. Given that a cliff need not be vertical, there can be ambiguity about whether a given slope is a cliff or not. For example, given a vertical rock wall above a very steep slope. Listings of cliffs are thus inherently uncertain, some of the largest cliffs on Earth are found underwater. For example, an 8,000 m drop over a 4,250 m span can be found at a ridge sitting inside the Kermadec Trench. One candidate for highest cliff in the world is Nanga Parbats Rupal Face, according to other sources, the highest cliff in the world, about 1,340 m high, is the east face of Great Trango in the Karakoram mountains of northern Pakistan. The location of the worlds highest sea cliffs depends also on the definition of cliff that is used, guinness World Records states it is Kalaupapa, Hawaii, at 1,010 m high. Another contender is the face of Mitre Peak, which drops 1,683 m to Milford Sound. These are subject to a less stringent definition, as the slope of these cliffs at Kaulapapa is about 1.7, corresponding to an angle of 60 degrees. A more vertical drop into the sea can be found at Maujit Qaqarssuasia which is situated in the Torssukátak fjord area at the tip of South Greenland
10.
Cliffed coast
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A cliffed coast, also called an abrasion coast, is a form of coast where the action of marine waves has formed steep cliffs that may or may not be precipitous. It contrasts with a flat or alluvial coast, the slope is constantly being eroded. The waves attacking the cliff-foot form a notch by constant abrasion action producing an overhang. This overhang grows in size as the cliff is undercut, until it collapses under its own weight, the loose debris that has broken off is gradually carried away from the area in front of the cliff by the action of the sea. As the coastal cliffs collapse, the shoreline recedes inland, the speed at which this happens depends, in particular, on the strength of the surf, the height of the cliff, the frequency of storm surges and the hardness of the bedrock. Thus, the Mecklenburg coast in Germany recedes by about 25 centimetres per year, whereas the chalk cliffs of southern England retreat by just ½ a centimetre each year. A cliffed coast is made of a loose material, such as at the Red Cliff on the German island of Sylt. There are, however, differences between the former and the latter regarding some peculiarities of the coast line and it represents the foot of the cliff preserved at and below the level of water table. On a cliffed coast made up of material which is only fairly or even hardly resistant to erosion no wave-cut platform, if waves carve notches at a narrow point on both sides of a promontory on the rocky cliffed coast, a natural arch may be formed. When the arch collapses as the coastline recedes further a stack is left behind on the wave-cut platform, the best-known example in Germany is the Lange Anna on Heligoland. Furthermore, on a rocky cliffed coast wave action is not the driving force for coastline retreat. General weathering of the bedrock is almost equally important, living cliffs are those on a coast that is still active, i. e. that is being eroded and is receding. A dead cliff, by contrast, is reached by very high marine waves and is therefore subjected to very little change. A clear indication of a lack of activity at a cliff is a covering of vegetation that appears on the cliff as wave action against it subsides. Well-known coasts with living cliffs in Germany are the Red Cliff in Kampen on the island of Sylt or the cliffs on the Jasmund Peninsula. The Königsstuhl on the island of Rügen is an example of a dead cliff. Others may be found in the regions of the present-day Wadden Sea coast of the North Sea a few kilometres inland and these show the former coastline from which the sea retreated as the level of water in the North Sea fell. Steep sea cliffs can also be caused by catastrophic debris avalanches and these have been common on the submerged flanks of ocean island volcanos such as the Hawaiian Islands and the Cape Verde Islands
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"Bridge, Natural". The American Cyclopædia. 1879.
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